Even if you think you are smoking just two cigarettes a day, there is no escape for you. According to new research, these may be enough to raise your risk of heart disease and death.
Scientists at Johns Hopkins University, who looked at the smoking habits of more than 300,000 adults for almost two decades, have found that men and women who smoked as few as two cigarettes daily had a 60 per cent spike in the risk of death from any cause compared to those who never smoked. Also, the smoking group had a 50 per cent higher risk of heart disease, according to the study published in the journal PLOS Medicine.
How is tobacco related to heart disease?
According to experts, consistent use of tobacco is a very well-established risk factor for heart disease, as it damages your blood vessel lining and accelerates the development of plaques and coronary artery disease. Smoking also causes heart rhythm issues like atrial fibrillation and stroke.
Smoking also increases your blood pressure levels along with heart rate, and reduces the blood’s oxygen levels – all of which forces the heart to work harder. These effects contribute to plaque buildup in the arteries, thickening the blood.
Does cutting back reverse the harm?
The study insists that cutting back on cigarette use may not be enough to reverse the harm. While even current smokers have a higher risk of death than former smokers, former smokers still have an elevated risk of heart disease more than 20 years after they had kicked the habit.
Even though adult smoking has dropped from about 42 per cent in 1965 to roughly 12 per cent in 2022 in most parts of the world – forming a decline of more than 70 per cent – the number of people smoking fewer than 15 cigarettes per day has increased 85 per cent during the same period.
According to experts, the benefit of quitting smoking shows the most positive results in the first ten years after quitting. However, according to researchers, it takes time for your body to recover and reach the level of someone who never smoked.
How can you quit smoking?
While many people try to quit, it is rare to stop smoking on your first attempt, and even harder if you try to do it without help. You have a better chance of preventing smoking relapse if you have help, and if you make a plan, which can include:
Nicotine replacement therapy
Nicotine patches, nicotine gums, lozenges, and nose sprays are for short-term use.
Working on triggers
Identify what makes you crave cigarettes and work towards ending it.
Replace nicotine with gum
Give your mouth something to do to resist a craving, which includes chewing on sugarless gum or munching on raw carrots, nuts, or sunflower seeds.
Exercise to divert the mind
As you quit, you may be quicker to anger, feel frustrated faster, or be anxious or tense. To take the edge off these feelings, do something physical that you enjoy.